Today in Zadar, organized by the National Foundation for Civil Society Development, the International Conference "From Vision to Change: Toward 2030" began. The conference represents a continuation of the 2019 conference "Civil Society 2030: HR-EU Euro Mediterranean", and this year's conference will attempt to offer answers to the question of what we must do in the next five years to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the 2030 Agenda.
The international conference was opened with welcome speeches by Mr. Mladen Klanca, Head of the Department for Social Welfare and Health in the City of Zadar and envoy of Mayor Mr. Šime Erlić, Ms. Cvjetana Plavša-Matić, Director of the National Foundation, and Ms. Helena Beus, authorized to perform the duties of Director of the Office for NGOs of the Government of the Republic of Croatia. The introductory part was dedicated to presenting the framework within which key topics for the development of civil society and cross-sector cooperation will be discussed in the coming days.
On the first day, a series of international presentations were held by experts from Europe, Africa, and America, covering current perspectives related to sustainable development, social innovation, philanthropy, and new economic models. Presentations were given by H.E. Ms. Marija Pejčinović Burić, former Secretary General of the Council of Europe, H.E. Ms. Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca (Malta Foundation for the Wellbeing of Society), Dr. Colin Habberton (Relatomics Foundation), Adriano Bisello (Eurac Research), Prof. Stephanie Fischer (American University), Ms. Hanna Surmatz (PHILEA – Philanthropy Europe Association), and Ms. Raphaela Tončić-Sorinj (Ashoka).
A video recorded at the first conference “Civilno društvo 2030.” was also shown, in which participants of the 2019 conference presented their visions, after which Mr. Dražen Šimleša, as a representative of the Knowledge Centers for Social Development in the Republic of Croatia, and Ms. Ines Katić from the National Foundation presented an overview of achievements over the past six years. In their review, they presented the progress in the development of civil society, strengthening the capacities of organizations, digital transformation, and the improvement of cross-sector cooperation.
The second day of the conference will continue with a presentation by Ms. Ivana Maletić from the European Court of Auditors on the transparency of EU funding for civil society and the future of the European Union’s Cohesion Policy, followed by parallel thematic workshops on civil society development, social entrepreneurship, sustainable development of local communities, and a session of the Council for Civil Society Development.
The last day of the International Conference will be dedicated to marking the International Day of the Mediterranean, with a panel discussion on the challenges in the Euro-Mediterranean region and the presentation of the iM:PACT – Innovations for Mediterranean program and the Zadar Declaration "Let’s Act FOR the Mediterranean". The full Program of the International Conference “From Vision to Change: Toward 2030” can be found at the link.
